Rhodes’ restructure was conditional

It sounds as if Dominic Rhodes was promised that if he agreed to take less money on his contract and the Raiders drafted Darren McFadden, he would be granted his release.

“If they drafted Darren McFadden I was like, ‘Listen, I’ll restructure but it’s got to be to where if y’all draft him I can leave, you know. Y’all let me go.’ That’s kind of how it went,” Rhodes said in an interview on Sirius Satellite Radio Tuesday. “They kept their word and they let me get a chance to go somewhere else and get my opportunity. I know they like Mike Bush. They just re-signed Justin [Fargas] and I didn’t want to have to deal with what I dealt with last year because I know I can play and I know somebody can use someone like me.”

Host Pat Kirwan asked Rhodes if he regretted the decision to come to Oakland as a a free agent.

“The year out in Oakland was a tough one for me, man, especially coming from the Colts which is a great organization. They put together their team in a way with not a bunch of guys that are supposed to be like Hollywood types,” Rhodes said. “They go and get guys like myself who they know can play football and they put them on the field and they win with them, you know?

“Out in Oakland it was tough, man. I got put into a bad situation. The first thing was my fault by getting the four-game suspension but then when I got back, they knew that I was going to have that four-game suspension, and when I got back they kind of held it against me, didn’t give me my shot to get on the field and do the things that they said they were going to do.”

“That right there kind of let me know what was going on and then I don’t see the reason why the Raiders needed to draft a running back, you know what I’m saying? We had like a stable full of running backs that are capable, that ran for a hundred yards, every one of them and we went and drafted a guy that – he’s a great runner, don’t get me wrong – but I don’t understand the logic behind it.”

Rhodes’ complaints about playing time carry some merit, but the thing that hurt his chances the worst was when Fargas exploded for 179 yards against Miami the week before he became eligible.

If McFadden is as good as the Raiders think he is, they simply couldn’t pass on him. Rhodes is an above average back, but not a home run threat. Once Jordan was injured in the same Miami game where Fargas won the job, Rhodes probably should have been the second runner and given more of a workload.

Jordan seemed clearly uninterested once Fargas took over and Rhodes talked from the heart and played from the heart.

He got a chance in the final two games of the season to put two good games on film, and the Raiders did the right thing in keeping their word and letting him go once they drafted McFadden.

There is no reason we cannot compete with this when you consider the cut blocking system and Tom Cable as our Offensive Line coach with Kiffin’s mind vs. Norv and our coaching staff on offense.”

As much as i like the raiders, it will be the Def that will make the difference. We can say whatever we want, they run a better Def compare to us. And the player fit wl in their system. We have 3-4 player and we will play 4-3.
When i said before the draft that our players are 3-4, i receive shit. Williams, Edwards, Richardson played 3-4 at OSU, Akbar Biamila, Kelly can be a 3-4 DE, then we drafted Trevor Scott that could play rush LB.
So our Def will be weak this year, again. Unless they all adjust, and RR is a good DC… muaaahahahaha

http://www.Raiders.com Oakglenn

The Discharge had an absolutely excellent chance to run to the Super Bowl. The problem was, the was the last two years. LT is now leaking oil badly, Gates has big foot problems and Jamal Williams is most likely done. That’s their three best players. They’re toast. They shoulda done it two years ago. The front office and the head coach had a complete Chernobyl. And people think we have problems here.

Cam13

DMC take the ball from JR, run on the left, the hole is quickly closed by Castillo and Williams, DMC cut outside, before the end of his cut, a bulldozer named merrimanoid hit him and knock him out till the end of the game. Hope fully MB come in and will try to break the bulldozer

HayesDaze#37

We can all use a pick-me-up…

Here, maybe this link works better. It’s a friend’s video short, with Anthony Anderson in it:

i don t see LT and Gates done yet. Maybe in 2-3 years. But they really need to renew their line on both side of the ball, plus get a new QB. JR is by far better than Cry me a River.
So untill we stop LT, chargers will be better.
Our offense will no be enough to beat them

SouthTexasRaider

highly unlikely.

JR puts it in the pocket of DMC and then pulls it out, secondary has bit on the fake, pump to the left and fling to the right to walker and

TOUCHDOWN……..RRRRRRRRRRRRAIDERS!!!!!

HayesDaze#37

Cam — I don’t see RR creating that kind of intensity. Nasty defense is gonna have to come from the players’ initiative, ‘cuz RR sure can’t fire them up that way.

http://www.Raiders.com Oakglenn

Rivers sux, LT is done, Gates is done, and Jamal Williams is done. They only had a lst and 5th, 6th and 7th choices this draft. they needed to replace Williams. They didn’t.

coinman

RaiderLen: i was there then too. i think it spoiled me, but i’ve hung in anyway.

HayesDaze#37

Coinman — same here. 60’s, and suddenly football and a team called the Raiders started appealing to me. An epiphany.

SouthTexasRaider

its time to payback the discharge from the schlooong…..with interest!

DMC is the new LT, now our back will gain 100+ yards on them twice a year for 7 years straight.
and the gates are closed…… its miller time!

HayesDaze#37

I look at LT’s TD and rushing figures, and I know the truth…

As awesome as he is, those numbers are at least 50% because of the Raiders defense the last five years. By the time LT really is done, he will be considered one of the 3-best RB’s of all time — mainly because of those numbers.

Tomlinson should buy Rob Ryan a vacation home for the contributions he made to LT’s career.

SouthTexasRaider

lol, true

HayesDaze#37

That’s it for me — out ’til tomorrow.

Check out that video, it’s great!

Later.

coinman

ten years ago, in my town, there was about an even split between winers and Raiders gear. now, winers gear is rarer than hen’s teeth. but i must concede one thing: i’ll never buy another current player’s jersy. just too much player movement these days. in the old days, you pretty much knew who was going to retire in S&B!

MR

Wow, Jerry. You entirely leave out Rhodes’ take on Davis v. Kiffin, where he drops a huge bomb, insisting that Kiffin has been snipped and that Davis is running the show.

Thank god there’s still one real newspaper willing to tell the truth about this organization, the Chronicle.

Jerry, you coulda been a contenda.

MR

Oh, and to respond in advance, believe me, I’ve taken it to the Chronicles comments section a long time ago. I’m done with this blog. The violins on the titanic approach by all of the homers in here, along with Jerry’s caving in to your guys’ demands, has made this place worthless.

Jerry, I’ll check back in from time to time to see if you’ve gotten your huevos back. As long as you’re catering to these homers, though, forget it. I’ll go to the Chronicle staff to get the dirt on the inner politics in Alameda that have contributed to the Raiders being the worst franchise in the NFL over the last 5 years.

MR

Alameda Insider,

Nice cheap shot at La Raza.

But to complete the analogy, how about Mexicans get in the spirit of right wing american tradition, by becoming impotent and taking viagra at age 35?

LMN, props to you for condemning AI’s slurs. As far as the rest of you? Your absence of a response is noted. Guess racism only gets to you guys if it includes criticism of Al. Most diverse fan base…my ass. At least not in here. More like a good ol boys club that has no use for minorities, unless they can outrun a secondary…

M

Something that very seldom gets recognized amid all of the Xs and Os and performance stats is the nature of people.
for example, take the Raiders Dfense. To a man they have known that their counterparts on offense were not going to produce game in and game out for the past several years. One can say that it is their job to perform no matter what, but I say that it takes a very special character to willfully perform anything to the utmost of one’s ability when it is known beforehand that the effort will be futile.
Somehow, those ol’ Monsters of the Midway (revisited) during the Butkus era were able to play with that abandon knowing full well that they were going to end up with a 3-13 or 4-10 record.
Most usually people tend to back off a bit (not quit completely like some West Virginian wide-outs) when the foresee nothing to be gained by going full bore.

I can easily see that the Raider’s Defense will be a much better unit this upcoming season not only because of the additions of Gibril and DeAngelo, not only because Kelly and Burgess may be healthy, but also because they know that the Offense will finally be capable of putting some points on the board.

coinman

M: i’ll concede that there is much logic in what you say. i pled for improvements in the lines first, and a trade down to get a left tackle to save russell’s life-and that is exactly what the raiders did NOT do. they got another “once in a generation” running back and three project players i had never heard of. but it’s done, and if al wants to rebuild his team backwards, then he will. the raiders have been my team since childhood, and i’m not changing now. maybe we’ll get lucky with injuries and be that “team of the year” that always seems to emerge out of nowhere nowdays. i think al’s wrong, but if i’m on the titanic, as you say, i’ll just have to learn the other verses of “nearer my God to thee”. and there’s always the chance that he knows something we don’t. we’ll see…

Cam13

Next year we will draft the fastest player like we do every year. Stop the mock draft. whatever pick we will be, we will get the fastest

coinman

when did we develop this obsession with “fastest”? we had cliff branch, but we also had the precision of fred biletnikoff. what about strongest, smartest, best hands, best routes, etc. and etc. don’t these factor in?

coinman

remember james jett? what great speed. what awful hands! how many game-winning passes did he drop?

Cam13

According to the coaches, speed is the most important.
I would say, speed is important, but if you dont know what to do on a field, the speed is useless. I prefer someone slower that can anticipate the play, the catch or whatever than a fast player that is always trying to catch up the play he should do

La Milicia Negra

# Alameda Insider Says:
April 30th, 2008 at 9:54 pm

Oh,..Hey,..La Melissa Negro,..big holiday next week huh?…how ya celebratin?…I think I will celebrate myself by,..well lets see,…maybe I will get in the spirit of Mexican tradition by mowing someone elses lawn.

# Alameda Insider Says:
April 30th, 2008 at 10:03 pm

This isnt your blog greaseball,..its Jerrys,..Jerrys blogging, not you loser,..you are posting in Jerrys blog,…La Melissa Negro,…I will pop in here in a day or so,…see you then.
__________________________________________________

Slamameda Outsider…

you’re right, and thats a first… This is not my blog, this IS Jerry Mac’s blog, i meant chatting (or posting as you said)… No I don’t have a blog, God forbid, that would be a disgrace…

I guess your remarks about the lawns and holiday reamrks was directed towards the spanish speaking part of your country… as I said its not my strongsuit, but your tone was not to be mistaken, I hope some day you get in trouble for talking like that. I guess doing your lawn would do you good, perhaps thats something you can figure out… I still wait for Chad Johnson Or Boldin…Hahaha….. and the part that there’s 7 slamameda outsiders using your name, yeah right, well get another name perhaps one less pompous… try again boy…

No reason for you to pop in here in the next few days, I’m going to sweden, but heck you dont even know what that is, you probably think its hte capital of Ikea LOL now when I think about it, There is NO reason for you to pop in here ever….

albert bigelow paine

This post is directed at the moderator. Regarding the above post, #729, I am requesting that Alameda Insider be banned from this blog. He is a racist. He does not represent the views of Raiders fans, nor should your fine paper allow such inflammatory and insensitive comments to appear in this blog.

La Milicia Negra

ABP…

yo… what on earth are you doing up so late?

albert bigelow paine

I live in Chicago, it is 7:30 here.

La Milicia Negra

ahh, okay =)

La Milicia Negra

well…

have a nice day in united bluff =) i’m going to a cup final before I go, then I’m outta here, hope you all have nice – and my team will be winners in 3 hours time =)

http://raiders.com RaiderTW

With the Raiders having no apparent hesitation in cutting Rhodes, the next question becomes: What’s so hard about letting LaMont Jordan go?
The 29-year-old running back, who joined the Raiders in the offseason of 2005, is primed to rake in $4.7 million in 2008, or $2.95 million more than Rhodes would have made. If Jordan miraculously makes it past next season, he’ll earn $5 million in 2009.
Wednesday, the San Francisco Chronicle indicated one reason why Jordan also hasn’t been shown the door alongside Rhodes.

“The Raiders are holding onto Jordan, a league source said, because some in the organization believe they can still get trade value for the man who ran for 1,025 yards in 2005,” Chronicle staff writer David White wrote.
It’s very unlikely, however, for a team to trade for a man who has had back-to-back seasons with fewer than 600 yards and four touchdowns.
So just cut him and get it over with, before he starts getting advice from ex-way-too-long-of-a-Raider Tyler Brayton.

http://raiders.com RaiderTW

Is it young in here, or is it just the Raiders?

With newsmaking slowing to a crawl out of team headquarters, let’s take a moment to think about the Raiders’ youth movement heading into rookie minicamp next weekend.
When the Raiders played in the Super Bowl six seasons ago, it was with a veteran team filled with players on their last legs. Indeed, Sebastian Janikowski, Shane Lechler and Ronald Curry are the only players from that team who are still in Oakland.
Five losing seasons later, the Raiders keep getting younger in hopes of building something that will be worth lasting. The average age of their projected starters is 26.4 years old. Last season’s opening-day roster was 27.4 years old, including three starters older than 32-year-old coach Lane Kiffin.
Next season, they’re expected to start just three players in their 30s: center John Wade, right guard Cooper Carlisle and right tackle Cornell Green — and Green could very well lose out to Paul McQuistan, 25, or Mario Henderson, 23. They started five 30-plussers in 2007
To get an idea where the youth is being served, look at the dynamic positions where the Raiders are most young.
Quarterback JaMarcus Russell will still be 22 when camp starts, while running back Darren McFadden will be 20. Fans are free to salivate over the longerm potential they have in the huddle together.
At cornerback, there’s 26-year-old Nnamdi Asomugha and 24-year-old DeAngelo Hall. If the Raiders can persuade Asomugha to take a long-term deal, their man coverage will be set for years.
Outside linebacker Thomas Howard, tight end Zach Miller and defensive end Jay Richardson all check in under 25.
All this youth doesn’t necessarily make the Raiders better. Russell is going to take his lessons the hard way early on, possibly at the entire season’s expense. Think how long it took Eli Manning to nail it.
Still, it beats trying to milk one more run out of aged players well past their prime. When the Raiders pulled Jeff George out of nowhere for a days of camp in 2006, you knew the season was doomed.

Ryan

Where did everyone go? Did the comments section get shut down? What did AI and MR do now?

408RAIDER

hello is there anybody out there

http://www.pillage-plunder.com BART Bridge Balla

Anybody see ESPN first take this morning? They had an interesting take on McFadden’s fumbling problem. Someone had asked McFadden about it, and he said that alot of his fumbles were attributed to taking the direct snap from the wildhog formation. That makes sense too because he had to hand it off to Felix Jones, or hold it like a quarterback, rather than lock it in. Something to think about in regards to the alleged fumbleitis of Darren McFadden.

“Pillage and Plunder in 2008″

408RAIDER

Jerry we need a new post

Tonio

Goodmorning all … 408… what topic would you suggest for the next post?

408RAIDER

Tonio

The main thing on my mind is signing McSkinny Legs & locking up Nnamdi long term. What say you?

eyen

NATION!!! People, i know it has been a LONG time since we could hold our heads high. but let’s be real for a moment. If DMC can acknowledge the NATION in lieu with SEC, well let’s live up to that!!The future is NOW! And we DO have the best fresh-junior class!Iknow there are “special” athletes out there, some are in the spotlight, and many are not. however, we have three of the best from the past four years in college competition. taking that up to the NFL remains the “concern.” DMC, JR, and BUSH WILL be very SPECIAL!Kiffin DRAFTED and brought back BUSH for a REASON. I have no specualtion when it comes to that decision. Bush is in shape, healed, OVERLY ANXIOUS to get in PADS, i’m sure!As for our O-line, i look at it this way..If I had NATION wide SCRUTINY and NO FAITH in me as a professional…then i have to PROTECT two of (what should/will be) best QB/RB combo…I would find it in myself to grow some balls and DO MY JOB!Young, eager, and FULL of talent, and you cant keep up with them, not to mention keep them off the IR…Those boys (DMC/JR) Will become the LEADERS of this offense/TEAM THIS year! My ONLY real concern about our roster is #21! The most tenured RAIDER on the roster, leaving us next year….DEFENSE back in TOP 5! Offense top 3 in rushing, JR passing rate very admirable! RAIDERS PLAYOFFS BOUND! thank you!

daaraiders

La Milicia Negra, thanks for your input on my bets in post #487. I have decide to take all three bets, including number 3 becasue all the ifs in that bet just mean there is no bet if any of the ifs happen. I also took another bet from him with 20 to 1 odds in my favor that the Raiders wouldn’t win 7 or more games for $100. i.e. if the Raiders don’t win 7 or more games I lose $100 but if they do win 7 or more games I win $2,000. Thx

http://0 Bob Marley

Allright, just for fun, let´s look at Glenn Dorsey´s profile as posted on NFL.COM…

Keep in mind this is just the negatives and the final overview, I said “just for fun” so I left out his positives because that´s no fun:

“Lack of ideal size might limit him to one-gap schemes….generates good penetration, but for some reason, he fails to seal the deal on the quarterback (has only seven pressures in 51 games).

Good complimentary type, but by declining postseason all-star invites it leaves one to wonder if he can dominate at the next level or is a player who was covered up by the LSU gang-tackling scheme (Tiger defensive linemen in the past have not lived up to their college billing in the NFL).

Compares To: WARREN SAPP-Oakland…While both have made a nice living off their explosive initial step, Dorsey does not have the same game-changing ability Sapp displayed during the prime of his career.

Let’s face it, Dorsey is a good sanitation man (takes out the trash by handling multiple blockers, thus freeing a teammate up to make the play) but if statistics tell the true story, he had just 13 sacks, 27 stops for losses and seven quarterback pressures in 51 collegiate games.

While we will follow the party line that he could develop into another Sapp, he also could be a clone of a former LSU Tiger, Anthony McFarland.

Injury history:

2006: Played most of the season with a stress fracture in his right leg, as he was forced to receive a painkiller injection prior to each game. Also had to wear a bone stimulator 18 hours per day until he was cleared to practice in 2007 spring drills.

2007: Limited in fall camp with a sore hamstring…Suffered a right knee sprain after an illegal chop block, missing most of the second half vs. Auburn…Had to wear a huge brace on his right knee and left the Alabama game briefly in the second quarter when he re-injured his knee…Sat out most of the Mississippi clash with a sore lower back.”

NFLDRAFTSCOUT.COM for NFL.COM

Let´s hope it´s accurate, I can definitely live with the next Anthony McFarland in KC.

408RAIDER

Yeah and L.ong weas the pick that most of us wanted!But as I have said b4 now that McFadden is a RAIDER I’m pulling for him to live up to the hype! Marcus hes not but @ least we have something for defences 2 fear

M

for any of you curious as to why LMN has a Danish holiday, it is a global holiday today, International Workers Day. The world’s “Labor Day”. So feel free to abscond from work if you want to.

nice article in the Trib about Nnamdi today.

http://0 Bob Marley

I don´t know about you, but these phrases would make me nervous:

“Stress fracture in his right leg, painkiller injection before every game, bone stimulator for 18 hours a day, a huge brace on his right knee..”.

All before playing a single down in the NFL.

408RAIDER

so do you think McFaddens the guy?

Tonio

bob… who is 744 in reference too?

Tonio

M… link the Nnamdi article if you can

Thec

NATION, WHAT IS UP?????? I wouldnt touch him with a 100 yard pole. He has the “possibility” of having a very short shelf life IMHO.
We made the right choice IMO.